Sam Alvey was in great danger of being remembered as ‘the smiley guy who didn’t win a fight’ in one the worst seasons of The Ultimate Fighter ever. However, after two years away and a return to middleweight, Alvey is finally making his debut proper in the Octagon this August.
“I’ve loved every organisation I’ve ever worked for,” Alvey told MMASucka. “But to have the opportunity to fight for the UFC is just incredible. To be put up against such a worthy opponent in Tom Watson is just amazing.”
“The UFC wants guys that are going to finish fights, not guys that are going to coast. My last three knockouts have been in the later rounds, but every second of the fight I’m trying to finish it. Even though I felt like I was ahead on the scorecards I didn’t feel like I’d won yet. They don’t want guys who fight for a decision, and I’m definitely not one of those guys who fights for a decision.”
Though Alvey is riding an impressive streak of finishes and quality performances, he faces a very tough opponent for his debut in the experienced Tom Watson. Though Watson is a tougher opponent than most débutantes face, Alvey is excited for the challenge that he poses.
“As soon as they said I was ready, without blinking me and my management said we’d take it,” Alvey said. “They told us shortly after who the opponent was, and I love the match-up [against Tom Watson]. I think we’ll have Fight of the Night, and I hope to be Performance of the Night. He’s incredibly talented, he’s very strong, and he’s had a couple of losses but they’re by split decision. He has a ton of talent and I’m honoured to be able to fight him.”
“We’ll be looking for the knockout, and I’m sure he’ll be looking for it too.”
Alvey was first introduced to the UFC audience as part of the cast on The Ultimate Fighter: Carwin vs Nelson, a season that has faded quickly from the memory of most fans. Despite an impressive first performance and a personality that grabbed the attention of fans and UFC president Dana White, Alvey lost his first round fight in an upset to Joey Rivera.
“To this day it’s my most disappointing fight,” Alvey said. “I just didn’t feel right going into it. I really believe the weight cut just killed me. Joey is a superstar and maybe even without the weight cut he would have beaten me but I do feel that I just woke up and felt tired all day. I tried to shake the feeling, but I just couldn’t, and it showed in the fight. It showed in the fight – I don’t think I threw a single punch, and that’s not like me. People who have watched me fight know I’m an entertaining fighter and I’m always looking for the knockout.”
After going through the trials and tribulations of the UFC’s signature realilty show Alvey is somewhat scathing about the show and the format, criticising the lack of things to keep the fighters busy during their time in the house.
Alvey said: “Honestly my biggest reaction to the show was that it was really, really boring.”
“You have almost nothing to do almost all the time. My team and coaches were fantastic and got us out of the house twice a day to train, but most people didn’t. The other team and in most seasons since and before you work out once a day for two hours and the rest of the time you’re just sitting doing nothing. You’re not allowed any books, no radio, no music, you can’t talk to the camera crew, you just get to talk to the same boring fighters every day.”
The cast of Alvey’s season of The Ultimate Fighter, unlike most cohorts, did not return en masse for the season finale show. Instead, just two fighters outside of the finalists were given instant shots in the UFC. Not being one of the chosen two, Alvey found himself out in the cold.
“They didn’t tell us we weren’t coming back until we weren’t coming back,” said Alvey. “Everyone knew our season wasn’t the greatest and I’m sure Dana White would tell you that – though he just made a comment about the current season being the worst ever and I loved hearing that, because prior to that our season was the worst! So we’re no longer in the number one spot.”
“They didn’t really say much to us afterwards, so my management called them up and they said ‘win a couple’ and now they’re welcoming me back. Hopefully I go on to have a better career than all of them!”
